The family of a brave six-year-old Everton fan who defied the odds after he was born with a rare genetic disorder have started a campaign to get him to Goodison Park.

Daire Flannagan’s parents were told by doctors that their son would not survive 48 hours after birth after being diagnosed with Apert Syndrome.

But six years on, little Daire, from Belfast, is thriving.

And now his parents have started a fundraising campaign to get him to Goodison.

Ciaran Rogan, a former neighbour of the family and one of the main organisers of the campaign, said: “Daire loves Everton just like his dad Barry who’s a big fan.

“It started off just as a conversation between friends and we decided to make contact with Everton to see if we could make this happen.

The trip would be a special reward for his courage and bravery

“The club have came back to us and they’ve said they will help us take Daire over to a game next season, which is brilliant, so we just have to wait until the fixtures are released so we can see which match suits.”

Ciaran said: “But because I don’t want Daire’s family to have to fund the trip, I still need to try and fundraise to help cover the cost of the accommodation, flights etc.

“I can’t believe how the campaign has taken off already, we’ve been in touch with fan forums across the country so it’s great.

“If we do manage to secure the funding for the trip it would be fantastic and we would also like to raise some funds for the charity Mencap, who’ve helped Daire and his family so much.

“If people would like to donate anything towards the cost of the trip we would really appreciate it, and they can get in contact with us through the Facebook page.”